The company, along with Concord, Mass.-based Boston Animation, is putting together a new game based on Skittles. That's right ... you didn't read that wrong ... Skittles. And Simon & Schuster Interactive Senior Producer Elizabeth Braswell was in the office the other day to show the game off.

Braswell describes the game as "Buffy meets Tomb Raider meets Crash Bandicoot." The game, which pokes a bit of fun at itself, is sort of Tomb Raider-style game -- a kind of fantasy third-person action game in which you cast spells and swat at monsters with your staff.

Using the traditional mouse-keyboard combination, you must maneuver your heroine, Skye, around the game world. Skittles are scattered around the game world, and they are a source of magic for you to be able to do spells and such. And the varying colors will mean different things, as well. Orange Skittles usually have something to do with fire spells, for instance. You'll start the game with one or two spells, and then build up your repertoire as the game goes on. There are about 20 spells in the game altogether.

The story of the game goes like this: There is an evil overlord (as there always is in games of this type). His name was Necroth, and he managed to begin sucking the life out of the world. It's your job, of course, to stop him and make things right again.

The game will feature five worlds altogether, with about 35 levels to romp around in, smacking monsters and collecting Skittles. Four or five of those levels will be what Braswell calls "riding levels." In those, you'll be atop a fish or a gargoyle, riding along instead of walking as you do in the other levels. The game also will offer five "secret" levels, according to Braswell.

Each level will feature what Braswell calls one "standard, traditional, fantasy-style puzzle." And each level will feature more than 50 speaking NPCs that you'll be able to chat and interact with. Each world also will offer a different feel from the others.

Battles will be more than a match of strength, too. You may be better served fighting some creatures with magic (spells) while other creatures will succumb more quickly to the force of your swinging staff, or what Braswell calls "melee" combat.

Parts of the level will require stealth, as well. From time to time, you'll come across giant eyeballs in the walls of some areas. If you let them see you, more enemies will be called to fight you. Sneak around the giant eyes, though, and you'll avoid the extra fighting.

Already, the game looks excellent, with terrific textures coating the game worlds, and marvelous animations bringing you and the NPCs to life as you roam about. The buildings' architecture throughout the levels looks very impressive, too.

Even better, so far, are the spell effects, the little graphical touches that show off the game's graphical horsepower. The game engine, which has been completely reworked since this year's E3, was created and developed by Boston Animation and offers gorgeous particle and lighting effects as you're casting spells to down your enemies. A lightning spell we saw in the preview build already looked very good.

The game's lighting effects also are particularly impressive. One scene Braswell showed us had Skye walking through an abandoned church, with red light streaming in through the stained glass windows. Very nice.

The game also will feature more than 2 1/2 hours of cinematics by the time the game is done being put together. And most of those, save for the opening and closing cut-scenes in each world, will be done in-engine.

"We pay homage to Tomb Raider and Alice," Braswell said. "It has the cinematics of Alice, but the controls are more like Tomb Raider."

Perhaps what sets the game apart from the scores of other third-person action games that are on the market right now is its sense of humor. The game, and main character, are very self-referential, often referring to the fact that they are in a game as the game goes on around them. For instance, at one point, Skye says to a ghostly character who gives her some advice: "Thanks, convenient apparition guy."

"What really sets it apart is the humor and sarcasm -- how she makes fun of the fact that it's a game," Braswell said. "I think it would hold its own even without the Skittles."

Currently, there are about 60 artists and animators working on finishing the game, Braswell said.

"Based on the atmospheric Skittle Brand Candy TV Commercials" doesn't really inspire much hope in you, does it? But it looks like Simon and Schuster are actually turning that premise into a decent game. They've taken the Skittles worlds, (you know, Taste the Rainbow?) and made them the setting for a new adventure game that balances melee combat with puzzle solving in a beautiful and inventive 3D setting. We saw a bit of the game at E3 this year and anticipating a delicious blend of cool gaming and the fine, fine taste of Skittles.

You play through the game as Skye of Lynlora, a shepherdess of modest proportions and disproportionate modesty. She's smart, she's sassy and she's searching for Skittles. You're out herding your Dwentils when you come across a Skittle -- I think it's an orange one. The Skittle gives you the ability to shoot fireballs (why can't I ever find the magical Mars candy?). Coincident with the finding of the Skittle is the appearance of a vast dimensional rift. Through this rift spew all manner of evil creatures bent on wresting control of the sweet, sweet Skittle from Skye.

Along the way, you'll be supported by a vast array of characters. Draak, your loyal Gargoyle sidekick uses his rapier wit (what, no rapier?) to inject a bit of humor into the game. Gannish,the Obligatory Wise Old Helpful CharacterTM will aid you as well. Dorian is a mysterious character that also helps you in the showing-up-in-the-nick-of-time manner. And you'll need lots of help to make your way through the 30 levels spread across five lands. Each land represents a different Skittles commercial. There's the one with the wizard's tower, the one with the Chinese birds, the girl with the unicorn and that other one. You know which one I mean. The fifth land is entirely new.

In each land you'll need to grab hold of different color Skittles. The various combinations of Skittles will allow you to cast up to 15 different combat spells. A massive fire attack might require a red and orange Skittle while a cool ice attack might require a green and purple and green Skittle. You'll also need to be on the lookout for five parts of a prism. When united the prism provides the key to destroying the evil Necroth. Necroth? Who's he? Oh,well, it doesn't really matter. Just know that he's bad and scared of prisms.